ServiceM8’s new software helps field service franchises start, survive and thrive

25 July 2017, Darwin, Australia: A Darwin-based international software company, ServiceM8, today announced a solution to support franchise businesses in field-based industries like plumbing, cleaning and garden care. The solution builds on the existing ServiceM8 app, and is set to help franchises around the world streamline their field operations, communicate better and maintain a strong overall brand.

The company’s announcement follows SoftwareAdvice.com’s recent FrontRunners for Field Service findings, identifying ServiceM8 as one of seven leaders in field service software amongst a global field of over 400 products. Now operating in over 30 countries, ServiceM8 has helped its small-business customers process millions of jobs, and invoice over $3 billion in work.

The new solution targets existing franchises, or those looking at expanding their business into a franchise. ServiceM8 CEO, Mr Kim Ford, also hopes their support of the franchise model will help more aspiring business owners get into their own small business, and survive.

“Many people working in trades and home services underestimate the difficulty of starting out on your own. They see what their boss is charging them out for, and think “Hey, I know the trade inside-out, I could be making all that extra money for myself instead of someone else,”” Mr Ford said.

“The reality is that small business can be hard. There is so much to it, so many moving parts. And most of the time, the owner has to do every single thing themselves. In Australia alone, over 200,000 small businesses start up every year, but nearly half don’t survive their first three years.”

“The franchise model makes sense on a lot of levels. When new franchisees buy into a franchise, they get the support, structure and processes they need to run the business and provide a great service - they’re not alone. And the franchisors? They can grow and expand their network with less risk and capital investment. It’s definitely a model worth considering for anyone looking to get into their own small business, or expand an existing one,” Mr Ford said.

ServiceM8’s announcement is timely for franchises in trades and services industries, an underserved sector when it comes to holistic field service and franchise management software. It offers franchisees communication, job dispatch, quoting and invoicing capabilities. And for franchisors, it provides visibility of network-wide operations, call centre management, brand control and quality assurance tools.

New Zealand-based franchise Exceed, We Fix Windows and Doors, piloted ServiceM8’s franchise solution with anticipations of removing the complexities of running a field service franchise network. Exceed, We Fix Windows and Doors Director, David Dovey said “Franchisees picked it up on the first go and the support from the ServiceM8 team was fantastic. Since using ServiceM8, everyone, including our customer care centre staff, are less stressed because operations are smoother.”

About ServiceM8 & ServiceM8’s Franchise Management Solution:

ServiceM8 is a field service management app which empowers small business to thrive. It’s cloud-based software for field-based trades and home services businesses like electrical contractors, plumbers and pool care specialists. Field staff use the software via a native app for iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch. The ServiceM8 app is proudly exclusive to Apple mobile devices.

With communication, job dispatch, quoting and invoicing capability, and real-time visibility on job status and staff location in the field, ServiceM8 helps businesses get work, complete work, and get paid.

ServiceM8’s Franchise Management Solution further extends the job management platform to empower field service franchises. Franchisees use the ServiceM8 app to manage and streamline their daily operations, while each franchisee account links back to the franchisor’s overall management account. This provides network-wide visibility of operations and performance, and the ability to instil great business processes and professional brand representation across an entire franchise.

NOTE: The content for the FrontRunners quadrant is derived from actual end-user reviews and ratings as well as vendor-supplied and publicly available product and company information that gets applied against a documented methodology; the results neither represent the views of, nor constitute an endorsement by, Gartner or any of its affiliates.